Defender glad to make his Mark in Premier League

May 21 2009 by Andrew McGilvray, Hamilton Advertiser

MARK McLaughlin this week sounded a warning to St Mirren that Hamilton are looking for three points on Saturday to secure a ninth-placed SPL finish.

And he’s glad that Accies get another crack at the top flight next season because it means they can try and avenge Saturday’s 3-0 home defeat by derby rivals Motherwell.

He said: “It would be a great achievement for the club if we could finish ninth.

“We’ve never stayed up any time we’ve been promoted to the Premier League so to stay up is a great achievement in itself, but if we could finish ninth it would be massive for the club, financially as well.

“It’s a big game for us on Saturday, we know it’s the last of the season and, hopefully, we’ll give it everything we’ve got and get a result.”

Marko was hurting after Saturday’s defeat and said the elation at staying up couldn’t completely mask that.

He said: “It does matter because to be honest you don’t want to get beaten 3-0 by anybody – especially Motherwell.

“It was a derby match, it was disappointing, and I didn’t think any of us played well at all.

“We actually started really well and could have been a couple of goals up in the first 20 minutes.

“I nearly scored after Motherwell’s first goal and it was a fantastic save by their keeper but after that... I don’t know if we panicked or if it was because things weren’t going our way, but we just stopped playing.

“Motherwell are a good side, they’ve got good strikers and midfield runners, so that’s something you can’t afford to do against them.

“But the good thing is that we’re in the SPL and we’ll get a crack at them next season, so we’ll look forward to that.”

McLaughlin (33), is understandably delighted to be given another shot at life in the Premier League and wants Hamilton to stay there as long as possible.

He said: “For me it’s massive because this is my first crack at the SPL and I’m not getting any younger, but I think I’ve adapted my game very well and I think I’ve had a good season. Hopefully, next year I’ll do even better.

“It’s been a hard season, especially playing our last three games in six days, and it’s difficult, especially when you know they’re massive games for the club.

“But it’s not just the club, it’s for yourself as well because at the end of the day it’s your future, your livelihood.

“No disrespect to the First Division, but when you’ve played in the SPL you want to stay there as long as you can.

“So staying up is a great achievement not only for the club and the players, but for the gaffer, Billy Reid, as well.

“It’s great for the club, the fans and the town as well.

“We’ve all had a season in the SPL and I think that will be a big thing for next season.

“It’s been a long, hard and tiring season for every one of us and we’ve had a lot of young guys like James McArthur, James McCarthy and Brian Easton involved in almost every game.

“It’s their first shot at the SPL and I think they’ve been fantastic, but in the last few weeks I think we’ve all looked a bit tired.”

Mark was disappointed to learn on Tuesday that a collection of bookings will rule him out of the first two league games of next season, but the stopper shrugged that off.

“It’s disappointing,” he said, “but I’ve got a big game to look forward to on Saturday to try and finish as high up in the league as we can, so we’ll get that out of the way and then I can look forward to my holiday.”